Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

We purchased this heat press because we have a new grandbaby and are excited to make special shirts, towels and other personalized crafts for him. This heat press was right in our price range and was perfectly sized. We didn’t want anything large and bulky that we couldn’t easily move from space to space in the house. Upon opening, we discovered it was properly packaged to prevent damage in shipment. It was in its original cardboard box, surrounded by form-fitting Styrofoam with plenty of protective air gaps. This box was then put inside a larger box by Amazon with additional protective paper cushioning. No damage was detected even though the package has some weight. Well done! I pulled the press out of the box, pulled off the plastic and set it on the counter where we were going to use it. There are instructions included, however they are slightly lacking. It was easy enough to figure out, but I’ve added a product demonstration video that will hopefully clear up any operational questions and help you understand how to properly use it. I ensured that the pressure setting of the press was set to provide a firm squeeze. This is done by turning the knob at the back of the press handle (counter clockwise to loosen, clockwise to tighten). If you tighten it too much, you’ll know because the handle won’t fully engage and “click” when closing the press. Just loosen it a bit more and you should be fine. The bottom table has a thick padded bottom so there is some give there. When I turned the unit on, the temperature gauge was already measuring 72 degrees which was the exact temp we keep our house at. This would indicate to me that the temp sensor on the press was accurate, at least at that temp. I adjusted the temp and the press heated up to 390 degrees quicker than the manual stated, in only about 12 minutes. We let it heat up the full time stated though so the heat was fully and evenly distributed. Once it was at temp, we set the timer for 30 seconds per the instructions on the decorations. We swung the heat pad out of the way and placed the shirt on the table, making sure everything was in place and smooth. We had been instructed to use a piece of cotton between the press and the shirt prior to heating. The only thing we had was an old cotton “terry” style towel. I recommend not using this though as the small threads on the towel wanted to stick to the decorations when we were removing the towel after heating. It came off with a little careful pulling, but there’s no need to take a chance. Once the towel was in place, I swung the heat pad around so it lined up with the bottom and pulled the handle down until it clicked closed. I then hit the green toggle switch and the timer started counting down. After 30 seconds, it gave a continuous audible beep indicating it was done. I pulled the handle up, swung the heat pad out of the way, and removed the towel. I then turned the shirt inside out and repeated the above process. The decorations were properly adhered and it turned out perfectly. We did a few more shirts right afterwards and the press worked great. I do have one suggestion: Ensure that the surface you placed the press on can withstand heat. As you can see in the video, we had it on our quartz counter top with a board directly underneath. We placed an old glass, heat resistant cutting board at the back of the unit to protect the counter when the heat pad swung around the back of the unit. I’m glad we did as the cutting board was very warm afterwards. Please note that we are not professional users. We just thought this would be fun for us to use on projects for the family. Overall, I highly recommend this unit. It’s very easy to use, compact, adjustable and heated quickly and evenly. Hopefully we can use this for many years to come.